The darkness swallowed us whole.
For one terrifying heartbeat, there was nothing.
No light.
No sound.
No ground beneath my feet.
Just the sickening sensation of falling into an endless void.
Then…
Splash!
Freezing water crashed over my head.
I instinctively tightened my grip on the Tidecallers Trident as the current dragged me deeper into the darkness.
My lungs burned.
Up.
Which way was up?
A familiar blue light suddenly cut through the blackness.
Ethan’s shield.
Relief surged through me.
I kicked toward the light, breaking the surface with a sharp gasp.
One by one, the others emerged beside me.
Sarah pushed soaking strands of hair from her face.
“I hate portals.”
Carlos coughed dramatically, floating on his back.
“I think we should all agree that from now on, every magical entrance requires a staircase.”
“You literally voted for the creepy stairs,” Ethan reminded him.
“I was under pressure.”
“You were the pressure.”
“I reject that accusation.”
Despite everything, I smiled.
It lasted only a second.
Something about this place felt…
Ancient.
Sarah slowly lifted one hand.
A violet flame bloomed above her palm, illuminating the cavern.
The light spread outward.
None of us spoke.
We weren’t inside a tunnel.
We stood on the shore of an underground lake so vast I couldn’t see its end.
Towering sandstone pillars disappeared into darkness hundreds of feet overhead.
Ancient bridges hung suspended between cliffs.
Waterfalls poured from unseen cracks in the ceiling, their silver streams feeding the lake in absolute silence.
The entire cavern glowed with veins of golden crystal embedded in the rock.
It was beautiful.
And impossibly old
Everything looked ancient.
Carlos looked around.
“…Okay.”
He pointed upward.
“So either we’re underground…”
“…or somebody built Atlantis upside down.”
“No Starbucks jokes?” Sarah asked.
“I’m conserving my energy.”
“I don’t believe you.”
“You shouldn’t.” Sarah replied
Ethan laughed quietly.
I stepped onto the smooth stone shore.
The Book of Origins slipped from the Void before I even called for it.
Its pages fluttered rapidly.
Golden ink slowly appeared.
THE TEMPLE OF THE FIRST SUN.
WHERE LIGHT WAS HIDDEN WHEN THE SKY FIRST BURNED.
Carlos leaned over my shoulder.
“Cool.”
He waited.
“That’s it?”
The page remained still.
He looked offended.
“I swear this book gets paid by the word.”
“It has never answered a question directly,” Sarah said.
“No.”
Carlos folded his arms.
“It answers like it charges extra for complete sentences.”
I closed the book with a sigh.
“Come on.”
The temple wasn’t going to explore itself.
The deeper we walked, the stranger the architecture became.
The walls weren’t carved.
They had been melted.
Entire hallways curved like flowing glass, frozen in place thousands of years ago.
Golden symbols pulsed beneath the surface.
Some looked like suns.
Others resembled wings.
Every now and then, I caught movement from the corner of my eye.
But whenever I turned…
Nothing.
Only silence.
Ethan stopped walking.
“You guys hear that?”
We listened.
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
Not water.
Footsteps.
Slow.
Measured.
Behind us.
Carlos spun around.
“…Hello?”
Nothing.
“Anybody there?”
He cleared his throat.
“If you’re planning on murdering us…”
“…I’d appreciate a warning.”
Silence.
Sarah continued walking.
“They’re not behind us.”
Carlos frowned.
“What?”
“They’re above us.”
All four of us looked toward the ceiling.
Hundreds of stone figures clung upside down to the cavern roof.
Humanoid.
Winged.
Their faces hidden beneath ancient masks.
Completely motionless.
Carlos lowered his voice.
“I’ve decided I don’t like this place anymore.”
One of the figures cracked.
Just slightly.
A tiny piece of stone broke away and splashed into the lake below.
Then…
Everything was still again.
“Keep moving,” I whispered.
No one argued.
The passage eventually opened into a circular chamber.
Unlike the rest of the temple, this room was perfectly preserved.
Four enormous statues stood around a raised platform.
A lion.
A phoenix.
A serpent.
A giant.
Each statue faced the center.
Where a single beam of golden sunlight somehow pierced the darkness from far above.
Impossible.
We were miles beneath the desert.
“So…”
Carlos said carefully.
“I’m no architect…”
“…but where exactly is that sunlight coming from?”
Nobody had an answer.
The Book floated into the air again.
Its pages opened.
Golden illustrations appeared instead of words.
The four statues.
A hand reaching into it.
Then…
The image shifted.
The sunlight reflected from one polished shield…
…onto another…
…until it struck a crystal hidden high above the chamber.
The picture vanished.
Ethan looked from the Book to the statues.
“It isn’t telling us.”
“It’s showing us.”
Sarah nodded.
“A puzzle.”
Carlos sighed.
“Why can’t ancient civilizations just leave instruction manuals?”
Ethan slowly raised his shield.
“Wait.”
He turned toward the beam of sunlight.
The polished surface caught the light instantly.
A brilliant ray bounced across the chamber.
Not enough.
“I need another angle.”
I understood immediately.
I lifted the silver shaft of the Tidecallers Trident.
The reflected light struck its polished blades.
The beam shifted again.
Sarah stepped into position, using a crystal embedded in the wall to redirect it one final time.
High above us…
Something clicked.
A deep rumble echoed through the temple.
The crystal suspended near the ceiling ignited with blinding gold.
Light poured through the chamber.
The giant statue slowly slid aside.
Behind it…
A hidden passage opened.
Carlos stared.
“…Okay.”
“That…”
“…was actually pretty cool.”
Then he glanced at Ethan.
“I’d just like the record to show your shield solved the puzzle.”
Ethan smiled.
“I had help.”
Carlos nodded toward the ceiling.
“Congratulations.”
“The desert likes you.”
Ethan looked puzzled.
“What does that mean?”
Before anyone could answer…
A calm, familiar voice echoed from behind us.
“It means…”
“…the Temple has begun watching.”
We turned.
Golden pages drifted through the air like autumn leaves.
They gathered into the graceful figure of the Book Guardian.
She smiled.
“I see you’ve survived another impossible trial.”
And for the first time…
There was pride in her eyes
Then all of a sudden
The iron gate slammed shut.
The sound echoed through the cavern like a judge’s final verdict.
Carlos grabbed the bars immediately and gave them an experimental shake.
Nothing.
He frowned.
“…Okay. Whoever built this place clearly had trust issues.”
No one laughed.
The cell was enormous, carved into the sandstone beneath the temple.
Ancient chains hung from the ceiling.
Torches burned with strange blue flames that gave off no warmth, only an eerie glow.
Outside the bars, the giants disappeared into the darkness, their heavy footsteps fading oe by one.
Silence settled over the prison.
Ethan leaned against the wall, still breathing heavily from the fight.
“So…”
“We got kidnapped.”
Carlos nodded thoughtfully.
“On the bright side…”
“We didn’t have to walk here.”
Emma shot him a look.
“Carlos.”
“What?”
“I’m trying to keep morale alive.”
Sarah sat on a broken stone bench, staring at the glowing rune carved into the floor.
“Something’s wrong.”
Emma followed her gaze.
The rune wasn’t decorative.
It was active.
Golden lines pulsed slowly beneath layers of dust.
Almost…
Like it was listening.
Then—
Voices.
Faint at first.
Muffled by layers of rock.
Someone was speaking outside.
Emma raised a finger to her lips.
“Shh.”
Everyone fell silent.
The voices grew clearer.
“…the payment arrives after the Solstice.”
Another voice answered.
“And if they fail?”
“They won’t.”
“The demons have already prepared the ritual.”
Emma’s heartbeat quickened.
Ritual?
A third voice spoke.
“What if the children reach the Sunstone?”
A harsh laugh echoed through the corridor.
“They’re already too late.”
“The Solstice is only twelve nights away.”
“The portal will open.”
“And when the veil between worlds tears completely…”
“…Earth and the Underworld will become one.”
Emma felt the blood drain from her face.
Ethan’s expression hardened.
Carlos slowly lowered his hands from the bars.
Sarah whispered,
“…Portal?”
The voices continued.
“Chef Rufus has nearly completed the preparations.”
“Every soul sacrificed strengthens the breach.”
“The final offering is all that’s missing.”
“The artifacts are the only things capable of sealing it.”
A pause.
“Then why not destroy the artifacts?”
“Because they cannot.”
“They were forged before demons existed.”
“Only the chosen bearers may wield them.”
Footsteps echoed again.
The voices moved away.
Silence returned.
No one spoke for several seconds.
Finally—
Carlos broke it.
“So…”
“…that’s significantly worse than I expected.”
Emma gripped the Tideglass Trident tighter.
“The portal.”
Ethan nodded slowly.
“That’s why they’re hunting us.”
“They’re not trying to stop us because they hate us.”
“They’re trying to stop us because we’re the only people who can close it.”
Sarah looked toward the dark hallway.
“And the Solstice…”
“Twelve days.”
Emma repeated the number quietly.
“Twelve days.”
It suddenly made sense.
The attacks.
The possessed towns.
Atlantis.
The relentless pursuit.
They weren’t random.
They were racing against time.
Carlos let out a slow breath.
“I liked life better when our biggest problem was creepy caves.”
Emma opened the Book of Origins.
Its pages remained blank.
For a long moment…
Nothing happened.
Then golden ink slowly spread across the paper.
One sentence appeared.
THE SUN CANNOT RISE FOR THOSE WHO REFUSE TO STAND.
Carlos blinked.
“I know this book thinks it’s being poetic…”
“…but sometimes I wish it’d just write, ‘Turn left.'”
Another sentence formed beneath the first.
WHEN THE PRISONER BECOMES THE PATH…
The writing stopped.
Sarah frowned.
“That’s it?”
Emma stared at the page.
“It means something.”
“It always does.”
Suddenly—
Clang.
Metal scraped against stone.
The four of them looked up.
A figure stood outside the cell. Visit g.com for the full chapter.
Not a giant.
A young girl.
She couldn’t have been older than fifteen.
She wore simple desert robes with a faded red scarf wrapped around her face.
Only her amber eyes were visible.
She glanced nervously over her shoulder before stepping closer.
“You shouldn’t be here.”
Carlos looked around the cell.
“…Funny.”
“We were just saying the same thing.”
The girl’s eyes flicked toward the Trident.
“So…”
“It’s true.”
“The sea has chosen its queen.”
Emma stepped closer to the bars.
“Who are you?”
“My name is Zahra.”
“My father serves the council.”
She hesitated.
“But not everyone agrees with what they’re doing.”
Ethan studied her carefully.
“You helped capture us?”
She lowered her head.
“I tried to stop them.”
“They wouldn’t listen.”
“They’re afraid.”
“Afraid of what?”
“The prophecy.”
She swallowed.
“They think giving you to the demons will spare Solora.”
Silence.
Carlos sighed.
“Classic.”
“Nothing says ‘good leadership’ like sacrificing innocent people.”
Zahra almost smiled.
“My grandmother used to say the same thing.”
She reached beneath her cloak and pulled out an old iron key.
“The guards change shifts in a few minutes.”
“I can open your cell.”
Emma frowned.
“Why help us?”
Zahra looked straight into her eyes.
“Because someone has to.”
She slid the old iron key into the lock.
Click.
The mechanism groaned.
For the first time since they had been thrown into the prison, the massive gate creaked open.
Zahra quickly stepped back.
“Hurry.”
“We don’t have much time.”
Carlos was the first through the doorway.
He stretched dramatically.
“I never thought I’d say this, but prison food was surprisingly—”
He stopped.
Blinking.
“…Huh.”
Emma frowned.
“What is it?”
Carlos snapped his fingers.
Nothing happened.
He frowned harder.
He snapped again.
Still nothing.
“…Okay.”
“That…”
“…is concerning.”
Ethan instinctively lifted a hand.
A blue glow should have answered.
His shield should have materialized instantly.
Instead…
Nothing.
Not even a spark.
Sarah closed her eyes, reaching for the familiar pull of her psychic abilities.
Silence.
Emma’s heartbeat quickened.
No…
She stretched out her hand.
“Tidecaller’s Trident.”
The corridor remained silent.
The Trident didn’t come.
It had always come.
Her eyes slowly dropped to the bronze shackles around her wrists.
Ancient golden runes glowed softly across the metal.
She looked at Zahra.
“What are these?”
The girl’s face lost all color.
“The Sun-Iron restraints…”
“They suppress magic.”
Carlos stared at the shackles as though they’d personally insulted him.
“So these ugly bracelets turned us into regular people?”
He sighed dramatically.
“I knew I felt less handsome.”
Sarah walked past him.
“I don’t think that’s the shackles.”
Carlos clutched his chest.
“Friendly fire.”
“I’ve been emotionally wounded.”
Even Emma almost smiled.
Almost.
Zahra hurried toward them, panic written across her face.
“I only stole the key to your cell.”
“The restraint keys are carried by the Captain of the Wardens.”
Ethan tested the shackles himself.
They didn’t budge.
“So we can’t use our powers.”
“No.”
“And we can’t remove these.”
Zahra shook her head.
“Not without the Captain.”
A long silence settled over them.
Then—
A horn echoed through the tunnels.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Zahra froze.
“They know.”
The torches along the corridor suddenly flared brighter.
Heavy footsteps shook the prison floor.
Closer.
Closer.
Closer.
Carlos slowly looked toward the darkness.
“…You know…”
“I was really hoping we’d have our powers before the dramatic escape scene.”
Nobody answered.
The shadows moved.
Towering figures emerged from the darkness one by one.
Each stood nearly ten feet tall.
Each wore black armor engraved with the image of a blazing sun.
Long crimson cloaks swept behind them.
Their spears gleamed like polished obsidian.
At their center walked a giant even larger than the rest.
Gray hair framed a weathered face marked by old scars.
Unlike the others, he wore no helmet.
Only a heavy bronze crown rested upon his brow.
At his belt…
Hung a ring of ancient bronze keys.
Emma’s eyes immediately locked onto them.
The restraint keys.
The giant’s gaze shifted from Zahra…
…to the open prison door.
Disappointment flickered across his face.
“You disappoint me.”
Zahra lifted her chin.
“I couldn’t let you hand them over.”
“I would rather betray the Council…”
“…than betray Solora.”
The commander’s jaw tightened.
“You still believe they came to save us.”
“I know they did.”
“They’re our only chance.”
For a brief moment…
Something flickered in the giant’s eyes.
Not hatred.
Regret.
It vanished almost immediately.
“The Council has made its decision.”
“If four strangers must die so that thousands of my people may live…”
“…then it is a price I am willing to pay.”
Emma stepped forward despite the restraints.
“The demons lied to you.”
“They don’t make bargains.”
“They make victims.”
The giant said nothing.
His silence spoke louder than anger ever could.
Slowly…
He drew a massive spear from his back.
Its blade glowed with burning golden runes.
Behind him, every Warden lowered their weapons in perfect unison.
The commander raised one hand.
“Take them alive.”
Carlos sighed.
“…Right.”
“So step one…”
“We steal Grandpa’s keys.”
The Warden commander frowned.
“I’m not that old.”
Carlos blinked.
“…Okay.”
“I probably should’ve kept that one to myself.”
The Wardens charged.